Arizona and North America is in the midst of the Geminid Meteor Shower, right now.
This annual celestial event is considered the best meteor shower in the heavens. Named after the constellation Gemini, this celestial event produces up to 60 multicolored meteors per hour.
The peak of the shower usually occurs between December 13 - 14, but there will be meteors visible worldwide from December 6 - 19. During the peak days visibility will be best in North America between midnight and 2 a.m., but meteor activity will be constantly viewable from 10 p.m. to dawn all the way through December 19th.
The Geminid meteor shower is one of the strongest meteors showers of the year, but in 2011 the moon will interfere with the prime viewing hours. The gibbous moon this year will hide many of the faintest meteors. The radiant point for this shower will be in the constellation Gemini and specifically the star Castor in the same constellation.
Best viewing is usually to the east after midnight from a dark location.
This is more than enough activity to dazzle viewers from Earth and is an amazing opportunity for photographers. The shower is visible with telescope, optics and the naked eye during the darkest early morning hours, this should still be an excellent show.
Bill Cooke from the NASA Meteoroid Environment Office was quoted on earthsky.org as saying,"Our all-sky network of meteor cameras has captured several early Geminid fireballs. They were so bright, we could see them despite the moonlight."
One of the most interesting details about the Geminid meteor shower is that it is not caused by a comet, therefore is an oddity astronomically. Most meteor showers happen when the Earth crosses orbital pathways with any major comet. As debris from comets enter the upper atmosphere of our planet, the vaporizing particles are visible by night as meteors. The Geminid shower appears to originate from a near-Earth asteroid named 3200 Phaethon.
This meteor shower is visible in both hemispheres of the Earth. Try to be away from main city lights and under open sky outdoors. It is an event the is worth camping out overnight to witness fully. Showers of meteors come in spurts and are interspersed by lulls. Give yourself at least an hour to watch the Geminids. Meteor activity is nearly invisible when the moon is down, so the moon is your guide for timing and is an easy reference to watch the shower by.
For updated information, both earthsky.org and seasky.org are great references. Enjoy the show and take some time to watch the wonders in the heavens tonight or through the week coming. Make your wishes on those falling stars my friends in Arizona and the rest of the world. Although they are not really falling stars at all.
Let the powers of Gemini entertain our planet Earth from the sky these December nights.
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